Today we’d like to introduce you to Kim Brewer.
Hi Kim, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas. My father was a self-taught artist and I spent a lot of my childhood traveling around with him helping him sell his art. I’ve loved art for as long as I can remember and never really imagined myself doing anything else other than being an artist. I went to Texas Woman’s University for my undergraduate degree and then got my MFA in Painting and Drawing. Since graduating, I’ve lived in Arkansas and California but I recently moved back to Dallas.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has had its bumps like any other. The system in which professional artists operate has changed dramatically in the last decade or so shifting away from gallery representation to self representation via Instagram and other online platforms. Figuring out how to navigate that space has been a challenging but rewarding experience because the connections that are made become very real and long lasting. I haven’t had a solo show through a gallery yet but I have had a museum acquire one of my paintings based off of exposure through Instagram. As a practicing studio artist, the biggest struggle is the isolation that comes with being alone in your studio all the time. It’s really important to try to find community wherever I am because I need those interactions to thrive in my practice but contemporary society requires us to actively seek those out.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My work is highly inspired by craft, folk art, and self-taught artists as this is the framework in which I was first exposed to art. My earlier work leaned heavily on a wide variety of craft mediums and was primarily figurative. I have moved into a more flat, graphic compositional approach that incorporates “stitched” text relating to the work and a lot of symbolism. I do a lot of masking in my work and combine that with airbrushing because I really enjoy the hard and soft components together visually and conceptually. I do a lot of writing when I’m not making art and this way of working satisfies the need in me to add additional layers of meaning in the work while also functioning well aesthetically.
I recently completed my first mural and I am most proud of that experience. It pushed me to my limits and helped me realize that my borders are much wider than I give myself credit for. It forced me to scale my practice in a way that I never imagined possible and I look forward to seeing how the experience translates into my studio practice going forward.
I think that my need to explore new mediums and ways of working sets me apart from others. Over the years, I’ve definitely developed a very specific aesthetic as a painter, but I tend to still approach art making from a conceptual materials-based perspective. This keeps the work alive and fresh and allows my practice to continue to evolve as I learn to use new mediums like stained glass, or working with wood and resin, embroidery and felting, etc. I do believe there isn’t much new to be found in contemporary art. It is now all about combinations, the maker’s hand (or lack thereof) and the human experience. So finding ways of working and developing any of these further is ultimately the aim of my practice.
What were you like growing up?
Growing up, I was always a dreamer and a talker. I was the kid who made straight A’s but would get brought outside and talked to in the hall for talking too much. I still chronically overshare but it comes from my genuine interest in others and connecting with people. This is a core part of my personality. I am a strange kind of introspective extrovert and I spent a lot of time alone in my room reading, drawing, and listening to lots of music. I have always been prone to fantasy and escapism. As a kid, I didn’t really have many friends so I lived in my own inner world. But in some ways, I’m lucky to have had that experience because it prepared me for my life as an artist.
Contact Info:
- Website: kimbrewerart@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brewer_kim
